GANNETT NEARS DEAL TO BUY JOURNAL MEDIA GROUP — SOURCES

By Dana Cimilluca and Keach Hagey

USA Today owner Gannett Co. is nearing a deal to buy Journal Media Group, owner of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel and other newspapers, in a sign a long-awaited round of consolidation in the beleaguered industry may be under way.

The deal could be announced as early as Thursday and value Journal Media at just under $300 million, according to people familiar with the matter. Journal Media had a market value of $192 million at Wednesday’s close, meaning Gannett would be paying a relatively big takeover premium. Gannett had a value of $1.7 billion.

The deal would add Journal Media publications–which include a handful of dailies besides the Journal Sentinel as well as dozens of community papers throughout the Midwest and South–to Gannett’s network of 92 mostly small- and medium-market daily newspapers in the U.S.

Journal Media was created this year from a complex deal that combined the newspaper assets of E.W. Scripps and Journal Communications.

Write to Dana Cimilluca at dana.cimilluca@wsj.com and Keach Hagey at keach.hagey@wsj.com

Breaking the story

Dana Cimilluca and Keach Hagey were first to report USA Today owner Gannett Co. was nearing a deal to buy Journal Media Group, owner of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel and other newspapers. According to sources, the companies would make the announcement as early as Thursday, valuing Journal Media at just under $300 million. Journal Media had a market value of $192 million and Gannett’s value was at $1.7 billion at Wednesday’s close.

Timeline

October 7, 2015, 5:10

Gannett Nears Deal to Buy Journal Media Group — Sources

October 7, 2015, 5:10

Deal Would Value Milwaukee Journal Sentinel Owner at Just Under $300M — Sources

October 7, 2015, 5:10

Journal Media Acquisition Could Be Announced as Early as Thursday — Sources

Subscribe to Press Releases

Email *Please fill in the required field. By clicking submit, I agree to the Privacy Policy and Cookie Policy and I understand I will receive marketing communications from Dow Jones professional information products from which I may unsubscribe using the links provided.

Thank you

Thank you for subscribing, your information has been submitted successfully.